A mattress is an important purchase and is intended to provide the user with a sleeping surface that can last for years. However, like any piece of furniture, a mattress during normal use, may be exposed to a substantial amount of wear, as well as to accidental spillage that can stain and/or degrade the mattress upholstery and the mattress core. During normal use, the mattress is typically protected only by a sheet and an optional mattress pad, and as such, the mattress is subject to damage due to perspiration from a sleeping occupant, coffee spills and the like. Although an impervious top sheet, made for example of plastic, can be placed over the top mattress upholstery, as is customary in hospital settings and with children, such sheet is uncomfortable to sleep on because perspiration cannot be absorbed. Normal bed sheets offer little protection for the mattress, because fluids easily pass through the sheets into and possibly through the top portion of the mattress. Once soiled, a mattress can be flipped over, but will eventually have to be cleaned which is difficult, uneconomical and rarely satisfactory. At this time, disposal of the soiled mattress and replacement with a new mattress is the most effective procedure to obtain a clean mattress, which is particularly important in hotels, motels, dormitories, barracks, some hospitals, some nursing homes, institutions of various natures, furnished apartments, and any similar environment having a relatively high turn-over of persons using the mattresses.
Mattress covers, including removable mattress covers that attach to the body of the mattress, have been made and sold over the years. Typically, these mattress covers provide some moisture protection for the mattress core by providing a removable cover that extends across the sleeping surface. One example of such a mattress is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,581,322, and includes a waterproof outer panel that includes a foam pad and that has a zipper for attaching to the body of the mattress. This waterproof outer panel may be removed when necessary and cleaned. Another example of a mattress having a removable cover is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,375 and discloses a mattress pad that is waterproof, removable and has fill material that may be selected by the user to achieve a desired level of firmness at the sleeping surface.
Although, these mattresses provide a useful removable waterproof cover, they themselves are bulky and difficult to clean, and very difficult to clean effectively.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a removable cover for a mattress that efficiently protect the mattress, is easy to clean, offers comfort for the sleeping occupant, and allows the mattress to breathe.